Indi Bullock wasn’t one for many words, but his affection spoke volumes.
He was the kind of child who would approach strangers and hold their hands, bring his mother a blanket each night before bed and run to the school bus every morning, eager to learn.
So it came as no surprise when his mother, Chakia Carter, was joined by many of his teachers and other locals, all offering their support as she frantically searched for her missing 5-year-old son at her Gwinnett County apartment complex.
“If you ever met him, you would love him, and he most likely loved you too,” Carter told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Saturday.
Indi’s body was recovered by divers Friday in a retention pond just steps away from the family’s unit at the Reflections on Sweetwater Apartments, located at 3405 Sweetwater Road, officials said. Police do not suspect foul play.
Carter said she was away from her son approximately eight minutes when he went missing Thursday around 4:30 p.m.
Credit: Ben Hendren
Credit: Ben Hendren
She and Indi were sitting on the couch in the living room with another family member nearby. Carter said she got up to use the restroom around 4:15 p.m. The door was left open, and Carter remembered still hearing her son’s iPad buzz with noise.
But when she returned to the living room, the door to the back patio was ajar, and Indi’s iPad was still running.
Police said Indi, who is autistic and nonverbal, jumped over the railing on the patio. Carter said their unit is on the first floor, and Indi is a tall kid for his age.
She checked the patio first before running out the front door to search for him.
Carter eventually posted on multiple social media platforms asking if anyone had seen her son. Word spread quickly, and her neighbors, friends, and schoolteachers showed up at the apartment complex and created search teams to help with efforts while police also looked.
“For the first couple hours, I’m walking too. Like, I’m yelling his name. But something in me eventually — I knew it was done, because I stopped yelling his name as I was walking. It was almost like I was a zombie," Carter said.
Even as she sat in her apartment with the gut feeling that her son was dead, Carter said she never felt more supported by her community. She recounted seeing Indi’s principal and most of his immediate and previous teachers.
Gwinnett police, with the help of K-9s and dive teams, searched the apartment complex, nearby woods and two ponds for Indi. Police spokesman Cpl. Ryan Winderweedle called the discovery of the boy’s body a “tragic end” to the search.
“It’s emotional for everyone involved — crime scene techs, detectives, I’m sure, those who are searching the water," Winderweedle said. “It’s hard for everyone to deal with: an innocent child that just walked away.”
Credit: Ben Hendren
Credit: Ben Hendren
Now, Carter is having a difficult time helping her other son Imani, who is also autistic, understand why his twin brother isn’t home.
They were never apart. The twins showered together, slept in the same bed, and even tried to brush each other’s teeth. Carter said that Imani has been more agitated than usual since Indi went missing.
“I don’t know if he knows for sure that Indi is gone or he just knows Indi’s not here with us right now,” Carter explained, adding that Imani will repeat Indi’s name while pointing to pictures of him around the house.
As Carter only begins the grieving process, she dreads the thought of planning a funeral but hopes to serve chicken nuggets and apple juice, her son’s favorite indulgences.
The family has put together a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for Indi’s funeral.
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